HONOLULU – NM State’s Sone Aupiu was named to the 2025 Watch List for the Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award on Thursday – the second consecutive year the honor earned was earned by the senior linebacker.
The Award is presented annually to the most outstanding college football player of Polynesian ancestry that epitomizes great ability and integrity. The Watch List is composed of 81 players from 40 different FBS schools.
The Watch List candidates have been selected based on past performance and future potential. Additions to the list will be made as the 2025 season progresses. The finalists and winner will be chosen by the Polynesian Football Hall of Fame Selection Committee which includes former NFL Player and Inaugural Inductee Jack “The Throwin’ Samoan” Thompson (Chairman), Coaches Ron McBride and Dick Vermeil, former NFL Player and Inaugural Inductee Olin Kreutz, Inaugural Inductee and past NFLPA president Kevin Mawae, former NFL Player and Class of 2015 Inductee Ray Schoenke, sportscaster Neil Everett, and NFL Network Chief National Reporter Steve Wyche.
Finalists for the 2025 Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award will be unveiled on December 9, 2025 and the winner will be announced on December 16, 2025. The presentation of the Award will be held during the Polynesian Football Hall of Fame Celebration Dinner (January 17, 2026), and they will also be recognized during the Polynesian Bowl (January 16, 2026).
Aupiu, a linebacker of full Samoan descent, enters his third year with the Aggies and is coming off his best year in Crimson and White. In 2024, Aupiu started all 12 games and finished fourth on the team in tackles with 55 total, including 26 solo tackles and 29 assisted. On the year, Aupiu tallied 4.0 tackles for loss while ranking third on team in pass breakups with five. Aupiu also recorded his first career interception in the Aggies’ road win over Middle Tennessee while logging five or more tackles in nine of the Aggies’ 12 contests.
For complete coverage of the NM State football program, visit NMStateSports.com – the official home of Aggie athletics – and follow the Aggies on Facebook (NM State Football), Twitter (@NMStateFootball) and Instagram (@NMStateFB).
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